Puzzles
by Entire Oranges
Summary: The Doctor is bored. The Master brings a challenge. Soon it becomes too much.


He growing tired of Liz mmming, mumbling and sighing as she searched. From across the room he was able to spot it, but knew better than to say a word; as a stubborn human she insisted on doing nearly everything unassisted. 500 piece jigsaw of the London Bridge a solution for their boredom she had said, when he completed in three minutes she brought out another from storage, this one of the Statue Of Liberty.

"Come on Ms. Shaw it's not difficult!"

"Shush! I've never been good at puzzles."

"Naturally you decide on that as an activity to do?"

"I can't get better at something if I don't try, right?" He just shrugs, though she couldn't see him doing so, she was able to take his silence as the agreement and went to searching for the missing piece. He removes himself from the wall he had been leaning against and starts to stroll around, Liz mumbling again. He needed something to do, no matter how stupid.

"Doctor!" He turns to the door to find Sergent Benton, slightly out of breath.

"Yes?"

"It looks like he might be back."

"Who?"

"The Master." The Doctor smiles. At last something to do.

"Where?"

"A market about ten kilometers from here."

"Doing what?"

"The usual Master stuff sir." The Doctor stops walking, it took a moment for Benton to realize this.

"Sir? The Brigadier is waiting."

"The usual Master stuff you said? How can anything he does be considered natural?"

"I don't understand what you mean Doc. Just his same old tricks and devices we've seen before."

"And you consider those to be usual?" The Doctor tries to remain serious and not to smile at the sergeant's kerfuffle impression.

"Not for other people, but for the Master yes I do."

"Much better. Now come on we best not keep the Brigadier waiting!" He begins to walk again, now taking the lead straight into the office with the semi closed door.

"Ah there you are! We best get going, I'm going to limit to just the three of us. Less people involved the better. We don't want the Master using any of his usual tricks on any more than necessary."

"Usual?" the Doctor smiles.

"Oh great, here we go again!" Benton mutters from the back.

"What was that sergeant?"

"Nothing sir."

The truck smelt like macaroon cookies which matched the crumbs he sat his hand atop of. Taking a look at the Brigadier he had done the same, but wasn't pleased over it.

"I say! Sergeant, who was the last to use this vechicle?

"I think Pieters was. He had to help his grandmother move into a rest home."

"He used a U.N.I.T vechicle to help some old spinster move!? The nerve!"

"Yes sir. He was worried he won't have enough time and his own car wasn't big enough for the job."

"Still he should have asked permission from me."

"If you had would you have said yes?" The doctor chimes in.

"I don't know. Perhaps." He thinks for a minute, "Yes I would have. I am not that mean of a person Doctor."

"I never said you were."

"Well okay than. But he could have at least cleaned up."

When the three of them arrived at the market the Doctor he surved the scene, broken tables and lots of crying.

"Please help!" A lady comes charging towards them nearly knocking Benton over. Of course she had no idea who they were, but they looked official and that was all that mattered.

"Calm down. What's happening?" The Brigadier could be calm and friendly like he stated a few moments before.

"Johnnie! He's he's he's..." She starts to hyperventilate, if not for Benton she would have fallen to the ground.

"Who's Johnnie? What happened?" The Brigadier was growing anxious.

"My boy! He's now a doll!" The tissue compression eliminator, the usual Master tricks after all.

"The person who did this where did he go?" With a shaking finger she points east.

"Doctor! Sergeant let's go!" As the Doctor nods, the lady reaches out for his hand.

"I'm sorry about your son."

"He wasn't my son."

"Pardon?"

"Johnnie wasn't my son, well not really. He was my dog and my best pal! It's not fair, he wasn't doing anything not even biting that annoying chow!"

"No matter what Johnnie was I am sorry."

"Thank you. Just find the person who did this!"

To catch the Master, nobody wanted that more than him. Always two steps ahead a mice and cat chasing game that seemed to last forever. For the years the Doctor knew him he had never imaginationed such hate and evil. Perhaps it was a cry for attention, a need to be held and a cure his lonely heart, but too many had been lost. Once he referred to the Master as his best enemy, a term of excitement and fun, like it was a enjoyment to play the cat with him. Perhaps it was, but no longer.

"Nine in total." He turns to Benton addressing the Brigadier.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes seven humans and two pets." Too many deaths, as a Time Lord the Doctor knew life was sacrifed and so did the Master.

"Call in reinforcements, see to it Sergeant." The Brigadier walks over to the Doctor, noticing the cold stare in his eyes.

"There was nothing you could've done for them."

"Yes there was. I could've stopped the Master last time. But he's always three steps ahead!"

"We'll get him this time I promise." The Doctor nods, not believing it, the Master too good.

They searched for three hours, chasing statements sworn by no nonsense witness, each taking them the opposite way the one before. Oh that man went north! He went west I am sure of it! The Doctor wanted to yell, throw something at every single of them. But he knew it wasn't there fault, and he along with U.N.I.T would have to search each direction even if it meant circling the entire country. It was at night fall, the three hour mark the call was radioed over to stop.

Another escape it seemed. Chalk a win in the Master's column, the Doctor thinks steaming with anger.

"Don't worry sir. He'll hit again and that time we'll be ready!" Someone spoke up, he didn't know or that moment care to know his name.

"I have no doubt he will, just that'll mean more deaths I am partially responsible for." The Doctor walks away slowly. Perhaps Liz had another puzzle a few thousand pieces, he could use with some boredom now to calm his nerves.


End file.
